Posts Tagged ‘Jeffrey Donovan’

Starts tonight at 9 (Eastern Time). Sweet. May have to miss the beginning of the NBA Finals to catch it. So now Michael is no longer protected by the mysterious organization that was trying to recruit him, leaving him vulnerable to the police whenever he breaks the law – which would make for a good drinking game if you’re into that kind of thing.

I didn’t realize they were only doing a half season. It sure flew by quickly. This show has become my favorite guilty pleasure on TV. There’s not much substance to it. It’s highly stylized candy with sprinkles on top, served on a doily.

The season finale was remarkable in a number of ways. It was one of the best episodes. (A couple of them from this half-season were pretty weak, but that’s to be expected from any show.) Michael has Victor, his nemesis, secured and wants answers, only to find out that they’re basically two different operatives who have been put in the same situation. They then join forces and take on Carla.

It was way more explicitly violent than usual. Much like the A-Team of yesteryear, the usual amount of death and injury seems puny compared to the massive amount of gunfire, explosives and general, old-school pounding on fellow human peoples. It also marked a possible end to the overriding/continuing plot line of who burned Michael and why.

To be honest, I wonder if the producers realized it was starting to matter less and less so they’re leaving their options open. Especially considering they really didn’t explain it much, all the sudden you just had John Mahoney playing a mysterious higher-up of who knows what.

It was definitely surprising to see Fiona pick off Carla with a sniper rifle and then see Michael finish off Victor with a shot to the chest, at Victor’s request. After all the nebulous appearances in many different episodes, I was sorry to see him go.

This episode was really nothing more than more of the same. And sometimes, if that’s all you really ask from this show then my bet is you’re going to be happy for at least another season.

As a kid, I grew up watching the A-Team. Today, I’m a fan of Burn Notice, which began airing new episodes last night. If you’re not familiar, it’s about a covert operations agent, Michael Westen, (Jeffrey Donovan) who loses his standing with the government. That means he’s got no identity, money, ability to travel or make money. They don’t want him dead. If they did, he would be. And it’s all because he’s being blamed for something he didn’t do.

It’s a dark comedy (but very lightly so) about the spy trade and his place in it. The best parts are the voiceovers where he gives what feels like little ‘insider’ tips on being an operative. For example (not verbatim):

“There’s a huge aftermarket for car parts, that’s why their locks and alarms are generally very good. But there isn’t much demand for motorcycle parts. So if you need to make a quick getaway, it’s pretty easy to steal a motorcycle.”

Stuff like that. I’m usually a sucker for anything involving covert stuff so I’m probably fairly biased. He spends his time trying to get to the bottom of who ‘burned’ him – their term for being cast out of the covert ops society – as well as spending his time helping average joes and joannes who are stuck in tough situations.

He’s helped by his ex girlfriend Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar, playing a former bank robber and operative for the Irish Republican Army) and buddy Sam (Bruce Campbell, playing an boozing ex-Navy SEAL who used to inform on him to the FBI). I think Bruce Campbell is a totally underrated TV actor. There’s also his mother (a very good Sharon Gless) who is never without a cigarette.

This is by no means a very deep show. It’s not think-piece kind of material. In fact, it very much follows the template and predictability of the old A-Team from the 80’s but does it in an entertaining way. First, he’s a fugitive. Second, he only helps ‘little people’ who are in way over their heads with the mob, major crime figures or the like. Third, he has very little regard for getting payment for his services. And fourth, there’s usually a sequence where they have to build an impromptu technological device or explosive to aid in their quest/mission.

Again (not verbatim):

“If you need to quickly improvise a listening device, get yourself a disposable cellphone. The microphone works well but the battery will drain very quickly. As long as you can hook it up to a reliable power source, you’ll have an effective way to listen in.”

This will be read while he/they solder wires and circuit boards to various parts of a dissembled cellphone. Intriguing stuff.

One of my favorite things about this show are his buddy Sam and ex-girl Fiona, who is a total trigger-happy badass. I think my favorite moment in the show was when Michael was pretending to be a street tough who needed to ‘rob’ Fiona of her purse. Well Fiona, at first, starts punching him in the face several times while he pleads with her to just sell the fact that he’s actually robbing her. Maybe it’s just me but I found it hilarious. Actually, my wife thought it was hilarious too so maybe it’s just the two of us.

Last night’s episode picked up right where they left off but also right into the same old pattern. It was exactly what I was hoping it would be and sometimes, that’s all you need from a TV show.